Culinaria - Spinach Quiche, Mussel Pasta Salad, Mashed Potatoes with Truffles - Prague, Czech Republic

The quiche had the right mix of the key ingredients; cheese, egg, and spinach. The truffles gave the mashed potatoes an earthy quality.
The pasta salad was uncomfortable. Since ending my strict vegetarianism, I'm hyper-aware of what I am eating. The meal I broke my principle with was peel-n-eat shrimp. To look at a creature so recently dead, to physically pull off it's legs and skin and put it into my mouth and chew was an existential act. I knew exactly what I was doing in a way that most people don't seem to.

Not long after that, I attended an oyster bake. The craggy, gray shells were taken from the ice buckets and put over a fire on a cookie sheet. Someone would turn them periodically, wearing leather gloves. Finally they were spread out on a makeshift table. I grabbed one and opened it with a special knife. Inside was a lump of delicate flesh, steaming. With great effort I overcame my fear, yes fear, and took it into my mouth. This incredible flavor was accompanied by my horror at the texture and my action. I ate four or five more.
So sitting in Culinaria, I experienced the horror again, but this time it was worse. The bodies were chewy, stiff, their little "feet" sticking out. The flavor was not enough to compensate. I forced myself to eat them, because the meal was ridiculously overpriced, but finally, with two left, I couldn't finish. 

Redneck - Breaded and Fried Salmon with Croquettes - Prague, Czech Republic

Mediocre salmon needs fried bread, but it's even better when accompanied by fried mashed-potato balls (croquettes). Why don't we have these in the U.S.?

Tartar sauce is a must, too. Amazingly, being here has weaned me off of ketchup for fried potatoes, but I still prefer it to nothing.

I don't eat the vinegar-only slaw garnish. Slaw should have mayonnaise. Lots of it. 

Donna Pizzeria - Anchovy Pizza - Prague, Czech Republic

I forget what the name of this was on the menu, but I was surprised that it came with sliced hard-boiled egg. About the multitude of sliced mushrooms: The only mushrooms that taste good to me are "button" (as named by a waiter at 518 West in Raleigh), chanterelle, and truffles.
Wikipedia says, "Button mushrooms have a unique flavor that can be matched by few other mushrooms." I would have sworn the ones at 518 had been marinated, but the waiter said no. Anyway, these mushrooms were too strong for me, as usual, so I picked them off.
The real disappointment, though, was that the anchovies were mashed up and sprinkled under the cheese. I was hoping for whole, salty filets to slurp down, like my mom used to get. Super thin crust is normal here. Instead of cornmeal-coated perfection (found only at Pinocchio's Pizza in Cottage Grove, Oregon) it's the weight, texture, and flavor of cereal box. Did I mention that I was hungry and ate this gladly? 

U Palacka - Sea Pike with garlic - Prague, Czech Republic

Being still new to fish, this was the first time I noticed the difference between fresh water and salt water, which I should have known: Salt water fish are saltier. Huh, go figure. This is another meal that looks unappetizing, but was pretty good. Not great, but okay. 

Selky Dvur - Peach Flambe - Dolni Lisna, Czech Republic

Unfortunately, the flambe was done in the kitchen and not at my table, but once it was in my mouth, I didn't care.

Hospudka Obycejny Svet - Salmon with Dill Cream Sauce

Way too much dill cream sauce, but boneless and fresh tasting. (Notice I said "tasting" because I think all of the fish is frozen.)

Restaurace Putna - Fish and Chips

Hey! No bones! Or, well, only a few anyway.

Restaurant Di Sherry - Spinach Pizza

Super thin crust seems to be typical here. It's hard to get pizza wrong, so it's no surprise that this was tasty.

Vejoudoua - Fettucine with Tomato, Garlic, and Basil

I ate this entire thing. It was good.

3+3+3 - Fried Edam Cheese

This was okay. The slaw (one sweet, one sour) blended well with the salty cheese. The service at this place was atrocious. I will never go back.

Cafe Del Sole - Tuna Ciabatta

Hard bread and soggy fish and tomatos even themselves out.

The Country Life - Carrots and Green Beans, Barley with Spinach Sauce, Oat Patty

This is a vegan buffet restaurant, just around the corner from studio. All of that food cost 80 krowns (about $3). It doesn't look appetizing, but it's very flavorful and filling. Not to mention healthy and cheap! I want a branch of this German chain in Raleigh.

Victor Prodleff - Gratined Potatoes with Vegetables

Very disappointing. The cheese and vegetables were good, but the potatos were steamed.

Hospudka Obycejny Svet - Baked Apple

This has to bake for ten minutes on a side, but it's difficult to wait until it's done because it smells wonderful the whole time.

Hospudka Obycejny Svet - Spinach Potatos with Bechamel Sauce

A whole bushel of baby spinach, creamy with onions, mushrooms, roasted garlic. A thick Cream of Spinach, Potato, and Mushroom stew.

Rudolfova - Trout with Tomato Sauce and Crab Meat

The trout was only okay. The crab meat was awful: straight from a can. Bleh. The potatos were covered in cajun spices, but were slightly soggy.

Hospudka Obycejny Svet - Baked Mad-Apple

So "Mad-Apple" is eggplant. I don't know if they mean mad as in crazy or as in angry. This was a soupy eggplant parmesan with chunks of garlic and onion and sour cream garnish.

Blatnice - Hot Raspberries and Ice Cream

So gooooood.

Blatnice - Grilled Trout with Lemon and Butter Sauce

Oh my god a full fish appeared in front of me. I had to learn how to eat it quick. The lemon butter sauce was perfect.

Comtessa Restaurant - Raspberry Jello Cheesecake

Raspberries, yes. Jello, no. Cheesecake, no. so why did this work so well together? I think the revoltingness of the Jello and Cheesecake cancelled each other out.

Tesco - 3 Krown Beer (12 cents)

Okay, not technically a meal, but this is my cheap beer.

Rudolfova - Potato Pancake with Cheese

This is a big, greasy, salty, oniony quesidilla but with a potato pancake instead of a tortilla. Lots of cheese, too.

Domov Mladeze - Yogurt Day

This is one of three rotating breakfasts at my hotel. There is a question of whether the yogurt (in this case cappuchino flavored) is actually yogurt or if it's really sour cream. The triangle wedge is a soft cheese. The silver square is cream cheese. The other two pats are butter and jam. You get only one basket of bread with exactly three pieces of dark bread and one free drink (choice of "juice"--it's Tang--tea and coffee).

Eet Tuin - Filled Courgettes, Hazelnut Parfait - Amsterdam, Netherlands

A courgette is a zucchini by another name, apparently. These were hollowed out and filled with spinach, cheese, pinenuts, garbanzo beans, red peppers, and corn and then baked. The zucchini was mellow, buttery, it's preparation a hint of fall to the summery red peppers, spinach, corn, and tomato pesto. It was good for what it was, but it didn't make me excited.

Now the hazelnut parfait (frozen custard) rocked. Sliced almonds, amaretto, fresh whipped cream, black and white chocolate shavings... Heaven.

Grand Potato - Patats with Mayonnaise - Amsterdam, Netherlands

Double-fried french fries smothered in Dutch mayonnaise (not as tart as American) and only a bit of salt. I lived on these. And the medium is only 2 euros.

Chinese House - Shrimp in Spicy Sauce, Vegetable Samosa, Fried Crab Ball - Paris, France

I thought I'd try something non-Parisian. I hate regret.

The shrimp sauce wasn't spicy, but the shrimp were edible, if not great. The "samosa" was a soggy, triangular egg roll. Greasey shredded cabbage and carrots does not a samosa make. The worst was definitely the "crab" ball with peas. I expected to find crab meat in the middle, but instead there were microscopic red flecks, that I can only assume was it. There was a disgustingly overwhelming baking powder aftertaste. It sucks that this crap cost 7.41 euros.

Musee d'Orsay Cafe - Tuna and Egg Sandwich - Paris, France

The baguette was very soft. The tomato, tuna, and hardboiled egg were as one would expect, not too dry, not too wet. Above all, they were filling.

Le Bistro 30 - French Onion Soup, Salmon in Bearnaise, Apple Tart with Ice Cream - Paris, France

This was my big fancy French dinner for only 15 euros!

The soup was more delicate in flavor than previous versions I had had. I loved the soggy chunks of bread inside the soup with the melted cheese on top. Not too salty, the flavors intensified as it cooled. It was difficult to eat with decorum, because of the super stringy cheese.

The rosemary-crusted salmon was tender and refreshing. The bearnaise was slightly bitter. The egg noodles were tossed only in butter and therefore perfect as a side. It's hard to believe that this fish and the substance in that nauseating sandwich in London came from the same species.

The apple tart was almost like a thin quiche. It lay in a mixed puddle of chocolate sauce and vanilla custard sauce (?) with whipped cream and ice cream as garnish. Far from too rich or too sweet, it was gentle, despite the slight shock between cold and room temperature. The creamy crust never turned to dry crumbs in the throat.

Khedive Opera - Cheese Omelette - Paris, France

Juicy but not soggy, salty and light with plenty of texture. The best omelette ever. The cheese must have been mixed into the batter. Only 5.20 euros.

Creperie - Egg, Cheese, and Tomato Sauce Crepe - Paris, France

In Portland, Oregon there is a little kiosk, in an upscale grocery store, called French Wrap where they make fresh crepes to order while you watch. The crepes themselves, buckwheat salty or white sweet, are impossibly thin and elastic. My favorite salty crepe was filled with fresh baby spinach, roma tomatoes and fresh mozzarella. (I am a sucker for these three ingredients.) The best sweet crepe was bananas soaked in rum, drizzled in chocolate, and topped with fresh whipped cream.

So how excited was I to go to Paris, the home of the fresh crepe? Right, and ripe for disappointment, too. This creperie was run by a Tunisian, which should have been a clue, maybe. The crepes were premade in a stack and reheated when you ordered. This made them tough and even crunchy in places. The egg in the egg and cheese crepe was beaten and poured on thin on top of the reheating crepe. Shredded cheese was sprinkled on next (it mostly didn't melt) and then a thick layer of spaghetti sauce on top of that. So unappetizing.

The chocolate and banana crepe was too sweet. The chocolate was actually melted Nutella, which is like cake frosting. Bleh. The whipped cream was out of a can.

The meal was edible, but bad.

Later on in the week, I had a good crepe from a stand along the Champs-Elysee who knew what they were doing. I videotaped him making my Grand Marnier crepe which took less than a minute. It was only a simple dessert crepe sprinkled with sugar and doused with liquor. Fabulous.

The Three Stags - Tuna Melt and Pimms - London, United Kingdom

Pimms is an English summer afternoon drink, like mint julep is in the U.S. It's got champagne and I don't have any idea what else, but the waiter had to "pop around the corner to the shop" to get more. This one came with cucumber slices, lime wedges, orange wedges, lemon wedges, and mint leaves. It is damn good. The creamy tuna melt was on a thick slice of hard-crusted bread. The fish wasn't too strong and the cheese wasn't too rich and the two together made my favorite London meal.

Cafe on the Square - Smoked Salmon and Cream Cheese Sandwich - London, United Kingdom

This is, to date, the worst meal in the short history of this blog. The salmon was much too strong and, it's hard to admit, but it was too salty also. Combined with the cream cheese, it was too rich. It was actually quite nauseating, like eating the smell of standing a dock on a late summer afternoon, but because I'd spent 2.95 pounds, I forced myself to finish it.

Cornish Bakery - Vegetarian Mediterranean Vegetable Pasty - London, United Kingdom

This was my second favorite meal in London. It was an entire pastry of the best pot pie crust you've ever had filled with thick, hot and sour stew. I would have eaten one of these every day and still would if I knew where to find them. And it was an unbelievable 1.75 pounds.

Hoop and Toy - Shredded Cheddar and Apple Chutney sandwich - London, United Kingdom

Cheese and tangy apple salsa on "brown"? Hell yeah. It was cheap, too (3.95 pounds).

Founders Arms - Beer Battered Fish and Chips with Mushy Peas - London, United Kingdom

Eh, it's bland white fish in fried bread (which is only an excuse for me to eat tartar sauce) and French fries. But wait, what is this green sludge? The peas themselves are huge. As nasty as it looks, it's a bit salty with a texture somewhat like chunky mashed potatoes and a similar comfort level, too. At 7.70 pounds, it was expensive, but it was almost worth it for the mushy peas experience alone.

Sticklers - Prawn Cocktail Jacket Potato - London, United Kingdom

You know you're not in Raleigh anymore when someone bakes a potato, stuffs it full of cold, mayonnaise-coated prawns, and puts it next to a naked salad. The potato's heat cooked the prawns, giving them a slight sweetness while the sauce melted into the potato. It was odd, but for only 3.50 pounds it made two meals.

Thai Pavilion - Pud Thai, Thai Iced Tea, Vegetable Soup - London, United Kingdom

It was so nice to have pad thai again. This version was served with a lemon wedge (no, no, no! It needs lime!), chopped peanuts and flaked peppers on the side, to be mixed in to taste. It didn't have enough sauce meaning that it wasn't as savory as it should be and it was missing fried egg, but the tofu was fried to the proper texture (even if a bit soggy). Overall it was only okay, but really, it had been so long that it was great.

Mitch's Tavern - Tuna Salad Sandwich - Raleigh, North Carolina

Pickles and tuna and mayonnaise. Mmmmm... The bread and cookies, though, are mediocre at best; fluff masquerading as wheat and barely sweet, bland dryness, respectively.